Rotary printing machine



May 30, 1933. H. w. SANDERSON 1,911,325

ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 24, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORHAROLD WILLIAM SANDERSON 7215 aii'orneyj May 30, 1933. H. w. SANDERSON1,911,325

ROTARY PRINTING MACHINE I 7 Filed Aug. 24, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR Y HAROLD WILLIAM SANDERSON 15y IZL'S aiioi-neys Patented May30, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

HAROLD WILLIAM SAN ERsO or COLLSELS, DENHAM, ENGLAND, AssmNon 01' cm:-

HALF TO THE WALL PAPER MANUFACTURERS LIMITED, or LONDON, ENGLAND ROTARYPRINTING MAOHIN E Application filed August 24, 1931, Serial No. 559,070,and in Great Britain October 22, 1930,

This invention relates to multi' colour rotary printing machines of thekind having a pressure cylinder; two or more prmting rollers; impressionrollers intermediate the printing rollers and the pressure cylinder andin frictional engagement wlth and rotating at the same peripheral speedas the;

said pressure cylinder, and toothed wheels and pinions'for driving thepressure cylinder andthe printing rollers, the gear ratio being suchthat the saidtoothed wheels and pinions and the said' pressure cylinderrotate atthe same peripheral speed, and this invention has for itsobject to provide an improved multi-colour rotary printing machine ofthe aforesaid kind whereby new -printing effects are producedand whichis eminently suitable for printing, from surface printingrollers,wallpapers, calicoes and the i 1 1 The gear rat-i0 of theaforesaid trainof 6 like. 1 I I According to this invention the machineis provided with a printing roller, orvprinting rollers having adiameter different from the diameter of the pitch circle of the drivingpinion or pinion's,thereof so that the peripheral speed of the saidprinting roller, or printing rollers,"is greater or less than the speedof travel of the web of paper, or other material (hereinafter referredto as a web of paper) passing between this roller, or

these rollers, and a yieldable co-acting impression roller, orrollers,whereby the design printed onthe said" web of paper is eithershorter or longer than that on the said printing roller, or rollers, andconse-' quently new printing effects are produced. I will moreparticularly describe this invention with reference to the'accompanyingdrawings inwhich Figures 1 and 2 illustrate, in elevations at rightangles to each other, so much of a multi-colour rotary printing machineas is necessary to show the application of this invention thereto.

In the example of machine illustrated 1 indicates a pressure cylinderhaving: a nonyieldable circumferential surface and rotated at apredeterminedspeed by means of a toothed wheel 2 to which rotary motionis transmitted from a driving shaft 3 througha toothed wheel 4, securedthereto, and a. pinion 5 on a stud secured to the framerA of themachine, which frame is presumed to beremoved in Figure 1 inordertoshow, clearly parts that would be obscured by the said frame.6511 Concentric witlrthe toothed wheel 2 is a toothed wheel 6 to whichrotary motion'is transmitted from the driving shaft'3 by a. toothedwheel 4a Spaced around the toothed Wheel 6 and in engagement therewithare toothed pinions 7 secured to the shafts of surface printing rollers8*(herein-s after referred to asthe printing rollers) for driving the.said printing rollers directly.

toothed wheels and pinions is such that the peripheral speed of thepressure cylinder 1,; the toothed vwheel 6 and the toothed'pinions 7 inengagement therewith is the same. Situated between the ends of thepressure cylinder 1 and the main frames A are auxiliary frames A!carrying adjustable intermediaryrollers 9 (hereinafter referred to asthe yieldable impression rollers) covered with any suitable yieldablematerial. These yieldable impression rollers are situated between theprinting rollers 8 and the pressure cylinder 1 and are rotated by theirfrictional engagement with the said pres'- sure cylinder. The directionof rotation of the yieldable impression rollers'9 is op-i posite to'thatof the pressure cylinder 1 and the printing rollers 8. The web of paper10 passes, as hitherto, between the printing-- rollers 8 and theyieldable impression roll-' ers 9 and bears with sufficient pressureionsthe latter rollers as to travel through the machine at a speed equal tothe peripheral speed of the pressure cylinder 1, andlthe, said printingrollers only hear on thersaidf web of paper with suflicient pressure asto apply colour thereto, without retarding or accelerating the speed oftravel of the said web. The printing rollers 8 are secured to theirrespective pinions 7 in such manner that the said rollers can be easilyremoved and replaced by others when desired, and the yieldableimpression rollers 9 are rotat ably mounted in such manner that theyl1ke- 10 wise can be removed and replaced by others when desired. Bythis means any desired pair OfcO-acting printing and impression rollerscan be removed and replaced by another pair having diameters differentfrom the diameters of the pair removed and this can be'eifected withoutchanging the driving pinions 7 or their position relatively to thetoothed wheel 6 with which they engage so that the gear ratio remainsunaltered. As the distance between the axes of the driving pinions 7 andthe periphery of the pressure cylinder 1 is constant it is preferredwhen changing a pair of co-acting printing and yieldable impressionrollers 5;: for another pair. of different diameters, as

aforesaid, that the sum of the radius of the printing roller and thediameter of the yieldable impression roller of the pair' of rollerssubstituted be equal to the sum of the gogradius of the printing rollerand the diameter of the yieldable impressionroller of the pair ofrollers removed, so that the slight pressure of the printing rollers istrans.- mitted, through the saidyieldable impresgglsionrollers, to thepressure cylinder 1. If desired, however, any one, or more than one,

of the yieldable impression rollers 8 maybe out of contact withthepressure cylinder 1.

. In niulti-colour printing machines in ac- 'g: cordance with thisinventiontany pair, or any desired numberof pairs, ofco-acting printingand yieldable impression rollers in which the diameter of the printingroller is different from the diameter of the pitch 5." circle of thedriving pinion of the said printing roller may be employed and as theweb of paper travels through the machine at a constant speed, thedesigns printed thereon by each of the said printing rollers go will beeither shorter or longer, according to the relative diameters oftheprinting roller and the pitch circle of its driving pinion, than that onthe said printing roller, thereby producing new printing effects. In'multicolour'printing machines of the kind to which this inventionrelates,'it has hitherto been the practice to employ a pressure cylinderof large diameter relatively to that of the printing rollers and tocover the 55 circumference of the said cylinder with rounds of lappingof calico, flannelette, or the like.- With this type of'pressurecylinder the printing rollers have to bear with I, greater pressure onthe web of paper pass- CS'ing over the said printing rollers than isnecessary for printing in order that the overlap of the blanket at itsjoint shall be compressed to conform with the diameter of the mainportion. Further, owing to the blanket getting dirty or to its constantchanging of diameter due to the tightening of the lapping, it isnecessary to replace periodically the blanket by another, whichnecessitates dismantling the machine and in consequence it is out of usefor a considerable time. By providing a pressure cylinder 1 having anon-yieldable surface, as aforesaid, that is, by dispensing with theblanket, or other yieldable material on the said pressure cylinder, andinterposing between the metallic surface of the-said cylinder and eachof the printing rollers 8 an intermediary roller 9 covered withyieldable material, as aforesaid, permits of the pressure to be adjustedas required, and this pressure, owing to the absence of the blanket andits overlapping seam,'may be less than hitherto so that wear is reducedand lessnpower is required to drive the machine.

Any suitable, or known, means maybeprovided for conveying. colourto thesurface printing rollers and any suitable means may also be providedforrotating the pressure cylinder and the toothed wheel concentric V 1therewith at the same peripheral speed.

What I claim is :V.

1. In avrotary printingmachine having a.

pressure cylinder, a plurality of printing 7 rollers, impressionrollersintermediate the printing rollers and the pressure cylinder and infrictional engagement. with and rotating at thesame "peripheral-speedasthe said pressure cylinder, ear mechanism for driving the pressure cylnder andthe printing rollers, the gear ratio being such that the gearsof said gear mechanism and the said pressure cylinder rotate at the sameperipheral speed, at least one of said printing rollers having adiameter difierent fromthe diameter of the pitch circle of its drivinggear,'so that the peripheral speed of the:

said printing roller is different from the speed of travel of a webpassing between said roller andits co-acting impression roller wherebythe design printed on the said web is caused to'difi'er in length fromthaton the printing roller.

2. A rotary printing machine in accordance with the preceding claim;wherein the pressure cylinder has a non-yieldable surface and theimpression rollers intermediate the said pressure cylinder and theprinting roller have yieldable surfaces. i

3. In a rotary printing machine having a pressure cylinder, a pluralityof printing rollers, impression rollers intermediate the printingrollersv and the pressure cylinder, means for rotating said pressurecylinder and said impression rollers at the samepe ripheral speed, meansfor driving some of said printing rollers at a. different peripheralspeed than said pressure cylinder and impression rollers.

4. In a rotary printing machine having printing rollers, a pressurecylinder and impression rollers for driving and printing upon a Web,means for driving said pressure cylinder, impression rollers and Web atthe same peripheral speed, means for driving some of said printingrollers at a different peripheral speed than said Web,

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, atLondon, England this thirtieth day of July 1931.

HAROLD WILLIAM SANDERSON.

